1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is in the field of film developing apparatus and more particularly in the field of dental x-ray film developing apparatus. Specifically, the present invention relates to an apparatus for storing, dispensing and developing one or more exposed dental x-ray films of the standard size, where the developing process is performed automatically and the user need only place a dispenser magazine, filled with the dental x-ray films, in position in disposition with the developing apparatus and then actuate the apparatus. The apparatus is specifically designed to be quite compact so as to occupy a minimum of space in the dentist's office.
2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
Processors for the processing of film and film-like materials are well known in various arts. In the dental arts, until recently, dentists were forced to maintain darkroom-type facilities in their offices so that they could develop x-ray films for diagnosis of their patient's dental problems while the patient was in the office. Such darkroom facilities occupy substantial space and thus contribute to the dentist's overhead expense. Accordingly, there is and has been a need for a compact dental x-ray film processing apparatus which operates substantially automatically, thus freeing the dentist and his allied personnel for more important tasks.
One response to this problem is the apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,857,040, issued to the present inventor and to Goebels. The apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,857,040 automatically processes a single piece of large, non-standard size dental x-ray film. However, that apparatus is not suitable for the continuous automatic processing of a plurality of dental x-ray films without substantially continuous attendance by the dentist or one of his employees. Specifically, that apparatus requires that the x-ray film dispenser cassette be changed every time it is desired to process a separate x-ray film. Furthermore, that apparatus is not suitably adapted for processing x-ray films of the standard sizes. Accordingly, the need for automatically processing a plurality of standard size x-ray films has not been filled by the devices available heretofore.
Normally when a patient is in the dentist's office, the dentist will desire a plurality of x-ray pictures to aid the dentist in his evaluation of his patient's dental health. As a minimum, the dentist will usually require four x-rays, one each of the upper and lower jaw on either side, and, depending on the condition under investigation, many more x-rays may be required. It is most desirable to be able to automatically process such a plurality of x-ray films in a minimum amount of time with a minimum of attendance from the dentist or his employees. This is not possible with the device shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,857,040, because a new x-ray film cassette must be inserted by hand into the film processor every time it is desired to process another dental x-ray picture.
A further disadvantage of the apparatus shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,857,040 is that the apparatus shown cannot process dental x-ray films of the standard size.
Due to a plurality of factors, including convenience, the dominance of Kodak in the dental x-ray film industry as a supplier of the dental x-ray film, and the choice of dental x-ray equipment apparatus manufacturers, three sizes of x-ray film have become more or less standard in the industry, with these three sizes of film comprising approximately 95% of the dental x-ray film utilized in the United States. These three sizes of film are Kodak size number 0, which is 7/8 of an inch by 1 and 3/8 inches, Kodak number 2, which is 1 and 1/4 inches by 1 and 5/8 inches and Kodak number 3 which is 1 and 1/16 inches by 2 and 1/8 inches. The present apparatus is designed to process automatically films of any of these three sizes. Additionally, overseas, another film size is quite common that being the size of 3.1 centimeters by 4.1 centimeters which is the same as 1.22 inches by 1.614 inches. The present apparatus is also suitably adapted to handle this standard size film. No such automatic film processing system, which is adapted to handle these standard size films and process a plurality of such standard size films is available nor is known in the art.